


Anpu

by MillenniumHyperboloid



Category: Yu-Gi-Oh! - All Media Types, Yu-Gi-Oh! Duel Monsters (Anime & Manga), Yu-Gi-Oh! R (Manga)
Genre: M/M, Other
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-08-13
Updated: 2019-10-28
Packaged: 2020-08-20 17:50:37
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 12
Words: 20,904
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20231914
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MillenniumHyperboloid/pseuds/MillenniumHyperboloid
Summary: Domino City had never been a fair city, or a safe one at that. Until a man in a jackal costume started appearing and criminals start to go missing or insane. It’s out of Yuugi’s pay rate, but it’s a story he’s willing to follow if it means his boss and his ex girlfriend are happy with his work. Eventual puzzle/blind, Yuugi’s a journalist and Atem’s a vigilante :p





	1. Chapter 1

Yuugi dimly remembers the guy from their high school days, and it wasn’t exactly friendly terms. There were more than a couple occasions where he had been lifted off the ground or shoved against a locker by either his group members of the victim or himself. He wished he could say it looked like the man had changed since high school, but the ugly expression, calloused hands, and rugged gang uniform told a different story. 

It was Yuugi’s job to give a condensed version of the man’s story, whatever he could manage to piece together in the night. The detective for the case was already at work with the police hounds, they weren’t particularly helpful for much outside of pinpointing a couple facts. The rest was up to Yuugi’s creative liberties, and whatever he could scrap up from the remnants forensics left for him.

There was charred clothing and burned flesh along parts of the man’s body, he had been identified a few hours ago by one of the officers. He had been a regular delinquent, but it was still hard on whoever had to break the news to the family. It’s never the easy part for them, one that Yuugi was grateful he never had to be involved with. Making sure not to tamper with anything that could be later considered evidence, he verified what one of their guys had stated earlier. Whatever had been happening tonight was coordinated ahead of time, possibly months, it was too calculated to have been an accident. 

It gave him the creeps to be frank. The attention to detail wasn’t being lost on Yuugi as he noticed the patterns of the spray paint that had been laid out to create a maze of fire for the victim. If he had been just a bit quicker, he might’ve made it. But it was clear whoever had been at the other end ensured that the maze would collapse in itself right as the player within could see the end point.

It was cruel and it made him nauseous. And that was exactly how he knew his boss would love to read every bit he wrote up about it. 

Honestly he hadn’t a clue why Kaiba had such a morbid interest in these things, it was murder plain and simple. But all the clues were perfect to deduce the attacker had been his boss’s recent obsession, a vigilante who’s gotten a reputation for enjoying his punishments a little too much. It wasn’t like he went around hurting innocent people, it was usually a figure who had been tormenting the general populace on varying degrees of relevance. Tonight’s case had been because this victim recently became part of a scandal of teenage pornography being distributed at the local high school. He had gotten off with only a couple of months in jail, much to the public’s outcry. To be expected when cases of injustice arise, Yuugi’s new muse would leave behind a body the following week. 

Kaiba practically wanted to make the man the new president after his first escapade, a case where former head of the police department was caught embezzling. Yuugi and his coworkers had been suspecting it for months, then when it finally came to the public’s attention the trial let him off with low fine and stern warning. Kaiba had been foaming at the mouth over the out come, having been at odds with the man for years because of the police force’s incompetency the past decade. Not long after the man’s cadaver was found drowning in bills and trash, Kaiba giving Yuugi and his coworkers bonuses for covering the story thoroughly. 

It left a bad taste in Yuugi’s mouth, he tried to explain it to his boss at the time but he was quickly muted out by the overflow of people thanking Kaiba while discussing when the next appearance of their suspect would take place. 

Yuugi called him Anpu in his articles, nothing special. He coined the name after spotting him once. It was only a second, but he was lucky to have gotten a fuzzy image. The journalist was able to make out that his costume had a dog like face, then the rest was dark colors laced with gold accents. He showed it to his photo editor and assistant Bakura, who was able to blow it up and deduce that the costume was in the shape of a jackal. 

It was a crude idea for a joke Yuugi felt. The guardian of the dead going around dealing punishments sounded juvenile, he was way too old to be interested in a man hurting people just to get attention. More than anything he wanted to find out who he was so he could get properly arrested, but he had to make sure he was the one to do it. If it were anyone else at their publishing firm, well....

It wouldn’t be out of the question for Kaiba to help the man gracefully leave the city untouched.

It made him sick, he couldn’t stand violence. It was the reason he had gotten into his profession, he wanted to report when bad guys got what they deserved and when good guys shone out. It was getting increasingly difficult to follow that thread once Anpu had turned up.

Yuugi moved some debris on the victim’s face aside using a gloved hand, telling Bakura to take another picture. 

“Notice the way his jaw is dislocated?” Yuugi said while holding up the cadaver’s face. 

Bakura swallowed deeply then nodded.

“Most likely from screaming when he fell. I can barely make out his face....can I touch him next?” The white haired man asked in stifled interested. 

“You can be a weirdo later, I think I’m finding our friend’s trademark. Look, right under the side of his face, on the ground.” Yuugi’s free hand maneuvered over to trace the outline of the object. 

Both of their gazes fell on the exposed coin that had been left behind. It had a wadjet eye on one side, then a river on the other in place of a head. Yuugi quickly looked at Bakura to give him the signal not to make any sounds. 

It might not technically be legal, but he doubted it would mean much down the line. Yuugi would keep it as a souvenir for now, it might give him some leads for future reference. He placed the coin in his bag with his notes and tape recorder, looking back at Bakura to nod that it was time for them to go. 

Before leaving they thanked the police officers present for letting them be involved, heading back to Yuugi’s car to write up whatever they could once they were in his office. 

This was getting heavier as the number of crimes increased. Yuugi didn’t know how he was able to stomach seeing so many dismembered corpses as of late, but he chalked it up to maturity. If he was the same bright eyed 20 year old when he first started the job, no doubt he’d be hurling out his breakfast into the closest trash can. 

Bakura was texting a summary of their notes to Kaiba while making himself comfortable in the passenger seat. He was carrying a jar of a sample of the victim’s skin that the police department graciously allowed them to take for their own investigation. They were to report anything and everything, even if their forensics already knew it. 

It was almost like they were competing, Yuugi thought to himself. Honda was a long time friend and head of their detective department, but it wasn’t as if the man had grown out of his youthful attraction to rivalry. He took pride whenever he got his force to figure out the facts before Kaiba’s agency was able to print a dramatized version.

Not that Yuugi would call his own articles a dramatization. His summaries were painfully dry and analytical, making his sections the least popular. Bakura’s were the opposite, his enthusiasm for history and the occult references made him popular especially with adolescents and women. It helped that he was also named the most beautiful writer they had.  
Yuugi couldn’t argue with that, Bakura was easy to look at. But Yuugi wasn’t shallow, and he knew Bakura too well to even think of him as attractive. They were too similar in their interests and weird views of the world, it would feel like dating his grandfather. 

He already felt like he was dating his mother in his long time relationship with another childhood friend, but he didn’t particularly feel like going down that rabbit hole tonight.

He was obsessed with Anpu, clear and simple. He wouldn’t be able to let this case go until he understood everything, a trait of his that had gotten Kaiba to hire him in the first place. 

Yuugi started the car’s engine, adjusting the mirror before shifting the handle into drive, but not before something in the background moved too fast. His head swiveled backward, enough in time to see a figure running away. 

Without even giving time to breath, Yuugi was shifting into drive and swiveling the car to give in to the chase. He didn’t care if it was probably some homeless person running off into the night, his instinct told him he needed to follow.

If Bakura was shocked, he didn’t show it. He probably didn’t mind Yuugi’s impulsiveness anymore, it usually at least went in interesting directions. He pulled out his gameboy to have something to do while the other man maneuvered into a path that would keep him on the heels of his target.

Tonight might be when he gets his answers.


	2. Chapter 2

Yuugi loved to drive. As a child, one of his favorite places was the go kart stadium he’d frequent alone until he made friends in high school. Even then, after his inner circle realized beating him was impossible, it went back to Yuugi’s lone rides through the different tracks to beat his own time. It was enough to wait at the end of the track with snacks until the young gamer had gotten his fix. Video games were worse events. 

The second he turned 18 he begged his grandfather to let him practice behind the wheel and he felt like a part of himself had been completed. Within a few short sessions his grandfather was laughing maniacally while letting the boy drive 80 on the freeway in the middle of the night until his driving exam appointment.

Once he was with a license, the rest was history.

Tonight had Yuugi feeling particularly excited because he had an excuse to break the speed limit. His target had gotten on to a motorcycle at some point, whipping through the streets at speeds that made Yuugi’s blood boil. He finally understood why Honda loved car chases. 

It was hard for him to keep up, much to Yuugi’s surprise. Sweat had started to collect on his brow as his eye stayed narrowed in concentration. Unconsciously he licked his upper lip, just when he thought he had the guy cornered he managed to give him the slip.

Bakura was gripping the handle bar and his seat to the point of his knuckles turning white. He wasn’t expecting it to go this far, and he really hoped a police officer would stop them at some point. It was the dead of night at least, so the streets were dead, but every turn hit him with a momentum that was enough to make his internal organs yield. 

Bakura enjoyed more grounded thrills. Haunted houses, count him in. Abandoned meth labs were fair game. Racing at midnight was something he would have to tell his friend was sternly not on that list from here on out.   
A yelp tore through his mouth at a particularly sharp turn that had them going through a narrow alley. Yuugi couldn’t tell if the emotions running through him were irritation or excitement at this point, probably both. He dimly realized a part of him was content to chase Anpu for as long as he needed. A war of attrition was something he’d never considered a part of a car chase, but he realized now it wasn’t a matter of who was faster. It was who would break down first.

He should’ve realized this when the other man (he thinks he’s a man?) tauntingly slowed down enough to make eye contact. It was his way of letting Yuugi know he had been noticed and was invited to a challenge. At that moment his heart leaped into his throat when his brain defaulted to the game playing mode. He was concentrated now. The wheel had became a part of his body, and the rest was auto pilot. 

Thinking was over complicating things anyway, Yuugi knew this from experience with any game. Let your instincts take the lead, give in to your impulses. His impulse said to take the next corridor out to cut Anpu off ahead. 

He felt close. He didn’t know if the other was as familiar with the town’s lay out as Yuugi was, so he tried to use any background knowledge to his advantage. This part of town Yuugi knew the ins and outs of particularly well because he had to create many escape routes when the wonderful Domino High thugs decided it was hunting season. 

He couldn’t help the bright smile when he realized he had gotten the upper hand. 

Yuugi swerved firmly in front of the motorcycle, not even caring if the other man crashed into him and killed them both. He was high on adrenaline, the fact that he could even catch his prey had annihilated any chance of fear or insecurities to get in the way.

This was not true for Bakura, who was already ducking below the dashboard. He didn’t want to see what happened next, but he found himself giving a small prayer to Zorc that when his soul was taken he’d be allowed one final moment to yell at Yuugi for being so recklessly competitive. 

The cyclist was able to stop before colliding with the journalists. Seeing him turn off the bike’s engine was enough to snap Yuugi out of whatever trance he had been in. 

He didn’t have any plan after catching up to a known murderer. The one who had just successfully tortured a man twice Yuugi’s height and weight hours earlier, as well as many others. And he was looking right at Yuugi through his helmet. 

The next couple of moments felt like they were under water. Yuugi had heard once from his grandfather that usually right before something really bad happened, the kind of things that get you close to death or lead to it, those moments were the ones that made seconds feel like decades.

Whatever primal part of Yuugi’s brain that realized this was incapable of coming up with a plan of what to do if the other man got violent. Fight or flight didn’t really apply to Yuugi, he usually went with flight, but he was the idiot that decided going right into danger was the option he’d be choosing tonight. 

Maybe putting his hands up to show he came in peace might get him out of this with his skin in tact? It was worth a try. Yuugi’s grandfather always told him if you can’t fight em, try to friend the fuck out of him until you killed them with kindness. He opened his car door and took careful steps out. 

“Hi there.” Yuugi felt like the biggest tool in the world when his voice cracked and his hand weakly lifted in what could only be called a wave. 

The other man was completely still. It was scaring the living day lights of him, but he managed not to shake.

Looking for remnants of his daring from earlier, Yuugi pressed on.

“Sorry about the rude introduction, I didn’t know any other way to get a couple seconds with you.” He maintained eye contact as well as he could, refusing to look down.   
He got a response after a couple beats, the man lifting his hands to remove his helmet. Yuugi stopped breathing.

Bright red eyes matched his own, lightly wrinkled from the wicked smile the man was sporting. He looked like he was doing everything in his power not to laugh. 

“I’ll definitely remember this as the best way a man ever tried to get my attention.” He was laughing at him now openly. 

His voice was smooth and steady, a stark contrast to Yuugi’s in the painfully felt silence. He tried to remind himself to breath as the other man came closer. 

Yuugi was wondering why Bakura wasn’t getting up to back him up. He looked over to the inside of the car to find the other had passed out at some point, most likely once the other man had gotten off his bike. 

Looking away wasn’t a good idea, the man had cat like steps. He was in front of Yuugi in seconds without making a sound. He was one of the few people to be a few centimeters shorter than himself, which was rare in itself since Yuugi was barely 5’4. The other had to be 5’2, tops. His slim frame made him look like a college student, but from experience of being mistaken for a student himself Yuugi knew better than to underestimate his age. He couldn’t be older than he was, though. 

Yuugi swallowed as a preamble for his next move. 

“My name is Yuugi Mutou, I work for Kaiba corporation. I’m not with the police department, I can promise that. I’m a reporter?” Yuugi said, his voice tilting into a question when it shouldn’t be from his nervous energy. The murderer wasn’t fazed, looking at him intensely while waiting for him to finish. 

Yuugi coughed to clear his throat once more. 

“I was hoping to get a few answers, if that was possible. I’m not expecting the world here, and I’d keep it all anonymous, but I would love to get some knowledge while I have you here.” He continued on while he grabbed a pencil and note pad out of his bag. He couldn’t tell if his face was heating up or if he was feeling the heat radiating off of the body in front of him. The other was also perspiring lightly from the excitement earlier, his dark skin looked glossy in the night light. He knew a picture was out of the question, but his heart was already telling him he’d never forget the other’s face after today. 

“It’s alright, I know who you are.” Yuugi almost dropped his writing supplies at that.

He looked up at the other’s face to find him grinning. 

“Anpu’s a cute name, I wasn’t thinking of calling myself anything particularly special. I hope you don’t mind me keeping it. For the sake of keeping this informal, you can call me Atem outside of your little...story writing.” He took his time when he spoke, having complete composure as he matched Yuugi’s gaze. 

Yuugi knew for a fact now that his face was heating up. He nervously licked his lips as he watched the other man--Atem continue. 

“You seem to have most of the facts down already, I’m not sure what you’d be particularly interested to hear that’d be relevant to your audience.”

It was Yuugi’s turn to smile. “I don’t write for my audience’s interest, let’s make that clear now. What I write is for myself, it just happens to help put bread on the table once in a while.”

Yuugi felt his chest swelling at being able to chip away at the other’s security in himself. It wouldn’t be noticeable to anyone else, but Yuugi prides himself in his ability to tell when he gets an upper hand, no matter how small, when it came to games. It was probably dangerous to think of his interactions with a known killer as anything remotely similar to play time, but a weird part of himself was enjoying this. He was finally getting to know the object of his obsession, and it was making him light headed. Feeling more comfortable, he went on,

“What I’d like to know more than anything is why you’re doing this, and what you’re planning on accomplishing with it. I don’t agree with violence of the sake of violence, and I’ll be honest when I say I’m not a fan of your methods. But I will acknowledge that you’ve brought some good to this town when the justice system is a disappointment.

If it’s to satisfy a craving, then that’s enough for me to drop this story here and now. I’m not interested in a sociopath.

But what keeps bringing me back is that I know you’re not doing this for simple blood lust, are you?”

It’s was the other man’s turn to look scared. Why he was afraid, Yuugi didn’t know. It might be because he didn’t think anyone would even talk to him like this.

“No, I’m not.”

“Then what are you after?”

His fear started to soften. His face was unreadable now, but Yuugi felt like the air had dropped 10 degrees.

“What I want is the same thing as you.” He said it almost like a whisper. 

Yuugi’s eyes widened.

“I want everyone to be safe.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i'm bored and i want this quarter to be over. so what better way to study for finals than not to study and to write ygo shit


	3. Chapter 3

A week had passed since that first meeting. Yuugi went back to his office, having carried Bakura to his apartment to drop him off. He had been exhausted from all that excitement, Yuugi even gave him a couple days off to recover. Kaiba wasn’t satisfied with the limited information Yuugi had gotten, but it was enough to write a semi decent article. 

Anpu had struck again, and he was going strong. The police were frustrated beyond belief, Honda having to give more than one speech to keep moral up. 

The city itself wasn’t scared, though. Anpu’s popularity was extending further out, becoming a word of rumors in neighboring towns. Yuugi’s mother and father lived out in the suburbs after retiring, but he was pleasantly surprised to get a phone call that morning from his mother asking how he was and what exactly this ‘Anpu’ was.

“Mama, it’s really not that big of a deal. No one innocent has been hurt--” Yuugi reasoned before getting cut off by his mother’s raising volume.

“Not yet, you never know with those kind of people. What if it’s a cover? And who does he think he is to take people’s life like this!” If anyone ever asked where Yuugi’s moral alignment came from, it definitely wasn’t his father. Yuugi could only guess the man had taken the phone away from his mother since his familiar voice chimed in,

“It’s interesting, all the Egyptian lore. I was talking to Dad the other day and he’s been coming up with theories. Maybe he was a part of one of those cults he saw back in his treasure hunting days, some of those people really got obsessed with the role of being disciples of Anubis or whatever they called it. I don’t remember the details, but you should talk to him about it.”

Yuugi put a hand on his temple. He didn’t know how to feel about his family members being interested in his work all of a sudden. Honestly he preferred the distance between his family and what he did for a living since it was usually such bleak topics. Murderous cults weren’t something he enjoyed thinking about when he was catching up with his father. 

“I don’t want to bother grandpa with my work. It’s my job to do research, so if I find something, great! I’m not worried about the occult factors unless it’ll help me find out where the guy is gonna strike next.” was his answer. 

He heard a slight struggle that meant his mother took over the phone.

“Better yet, tell the police where he is so people won't be scared!” 

Yuugi felt himself smile.

“The people love him, Mama.”

“I don’t and I’m one of the people.”

“You’re not a resident of this city anymore Mama.”

“But my son is!” She said of if he was the only one that mattered.

Yuugi looked over his shoulder to see Mokuba giving him a glare that clearly meant ‘Wrap this up or get out’. His glares were nothing compared to his brother’s, but the message was clear.

“Ok Mama, tell Papa I love you both.” 

He sighed after hanging up. He couldn’t tell his mother that she really didn’t need to worry about his physical safety. Actually, Yuugi never felt safer after meeting Atem even though he had no reason to believe Atem wouldn't hurt him. Something in his gut was telling him not to, for some reason.

The man clearly wanted to help people, he just...had a weird way of thinking. Yuugi wasn’t 100% sure of his upbringing just yet, but he could tell the man genuinely didn’t know what else he could be doing to stop bad guys. He seemed so mature in some ways, then childish in his thought process with others. It gave Yuugi a head ache trying to figure him out. 

Yuugi's interest in the town’s new ‘protector’ wasn’t wavering. He was excited for his next meeting with the man, it was taking up all his mental space that should have been used for work. 

He was invited to his next heist. It wasn’t going to be a murder, he made it abundantly clear he respected Yuugi’s stance on violence. He would allow him to tag along to get a better idea of his over arching plans since Yuugi was only get half of the story, as he found out in their last conversation. 

Yuugi tried to get more out of him, but at that point Atem told him he’d been in the same area for too long. He needed to get out of town to let the dust settle before he could even think to set his next project in motion, but he gave Yuugi a way to keep in touch. 

He didn’t expect the other to give him his phone number so easily, but when Yuugi’s first instinct was to use a tracker on the number he found out Atem was smarter than to leave an opening. His IP was heavily encrypted, he tried showing it to Mokuba under the guise of it being a witness’s number, but even the tech geeks at Kaiba corp couldn’t leave a dent in Atem’s defenses.

He was good at what he was doing. If he was playing Yuugi, he was either really good at it or he didn’t think he was enough of a threat to care too much.

Not that he should, Yuugi wasn’t trying to figure it out for anything beyond curiosity. Much like the car chase, he wasn’t tracking Atem down to hand him over to the police. His heart was telling him he needed to stop Atem another way that the criminal justice system wouldn’t be able to do. Maybe he could talk him out of killing people?

It was idealistic and naive, he knew it. He wanted to try anyway, at least he could say he did if it all blows up in his face in the end. 

Taking a sip of his coffee with one hand, he scrolled down his contact list with his free hand to get to Atem’s number. He had it named under the guise ‘Dentist’ in case there were any peeping toms in his office (Jounouchi) or someone started to wonder why he was on his phone so much (Anzu). 

They hadn’t texted very often, but he was supposed to be getting more details about their get together today. He didn’t want to text first so he didn’t come off as too eager, even though he was. 

He wanted to know what else Atem was doing. He felt like there was something bigger happening in the city, and if there was a story he needed to get to it first. That and he genuinely liked learning more about Atem in a purely platonic and not creepy way. 

Absolutely pure intentions and no wandering thoughts whatsoever. Not ones about the way his skin glowed from sweat in the moon light or the way his jump suit hugged his slim figure in the right ways. Or ones from how the man winked at him before driving off into the night. 

He felt like he was choking when he still didn’t get a response and it had been an hour and seven minutes later than the time Atem said he would be contacting him. Not that Yuugi was paying attention to something that trivial.

This was another reason he knew he had been a head ache for Anzu. He got to hung up on the little things. Of course the man wasn’t misleading him, and the time frame was given with an initial ‘around *insert time*’. It wasn’t set in stone, the man had a life outside of Yuugi and that’s ok. Yuugi was patient and understanding.

Yuugi was inpatient and he was about to cave into calling him, but not before seeing that he did in fact have a message from Atem.

“We're going to I2’s head quarters down town at 8. Get to the bullet train, I'm picking you up. Wear your work attire to blend in. Delete your messages after this.”

Yuugi gulped. There was a set time and place. Yeesh, he was even telling him what to wear, Yuugi joked to himself. 

He forced himself to keep writing the draft for his next article but he couldn’t help himself getting distracted with thoughts about tonight. He was excited, it almost felt like he was committing a crime, too. Maybe he was.

Ok he probably was considering he hadn’t contacted the authorities with all the information he’d gotten so far. It’s not like any of it was particularly useful, he tried to reason with himself. All he had on them was that he knew the man behind the mask’s face. He wasn’t going to count the name Atem had allowed him to use because it could very well be an alias. Maybe Atem was in disguise as well when they met, he doubted red eyes were that common, and his hair was as wild and unusual as Yuugi’s. Scratch that, his hair made him look like a mad scientist compared to Yuugi, and that was saying something. It could be a wig for all Yuugi knew. 

But then there were butterflies in Yuugi’s stomach as he realized he was about to be let off work for the day. He had managed to scrap together something legible to continue working on next week, blessing the gods that he had the weekend off. He didn’t know if he’d be able to sleep tonight even after he departed ways with Atem. He definitely didn’t sleep that night they met. 

Atem made his thoughts race too much. It was unhealthy and unfair. 

His drive home felt too short from being still lost in his head, trying to think what ‘work attire’ would best fit to blend in with I2 employees. It was a card game company, so he thought business casual like what he wore at his own office would suffice. He didn’t want to wear his crumpled day clothes though. Not that he wanted to look good for Atem, but it would be better to wear a shirt that wasn’t so winkled, slacks and real shoes instead of his usual jeans and sneakers when he went to their meeting place. 

His mind raced with potential motivations for why Atem would choose I2 of all reasons. Pegasus was a known philanthropist and a beloved figure for children all over the globe. The man founded his company when he was 18, after his lover died. His family had been old money, more than enough to make his business a success in the first year. The card game exploded in Japan and the States, Yuugi being open in his own love for Duel Monsters.

So why I2? Were there skeletons in Pegasus’s closet that Kaiba Corp had missed? 

He didn’t know what to make of it. Maybe he’d learn something cool in regards to the card game’s history if it turns out this case was a red herring to get Yuugi off of Atem’s trail.

Yuugi felt a pit in his stomach when he remembered Atem’s usual trend. From what he’s seen, Anpu’s victims had two routes. Torture and death, or torture and severe mental trauma that left them comatose. He didn’t know what to make of it now that he had shared words with the man, his face made it impossible for Yuugi to imagine him as a killer.

But the facts were there. Yuugi shouldn’t get distracted with the details of Atem as a person when the big picture should be where his focus was put into. He’d stop himself from getting caught in whatever tricks Atem might have planned. 

He was not going to being a naive idiot. He was too old to get tricked for being too trusting. 

Yuugi took the bullet train down town, Atem having told him he had a car prepared to pick him up at their rendezvous point before going to the heart of the city to I2. No motorcycle tonight, probably because he’d have a tag along this time. 

Yuugi felt his heart practically skipping when he referred to himself as a tag along. He was not a partner in crime, he was not helping him commit any acts of violence. If things got out of hand, Yuugi was prepared to put his life on the line to keep people from getting hurt. His job had put him in those kind of situations before, especially when Kaiba had sent him to cities outside of Japan for research purposes. 

Yuugi knew at least that when it came down to it, he wasn’t a coward. Yes he was afraid of what Atem was capable of, but not enough to make him freeze.  
And hey, maybe he could bullshit enough to stop himself from getting killed.

He didn’t want to think about that option of Atem using tonight as a ruse to get Yuugi alone to finish off his one witness, even though it very well could be true. Yuugi knew it wasn’t too far of a stretch for him to be walking face first into a trap.

Before he could rethink his actions, he was at his stop. Outside of the station he saw the car that fit Atem’s description. A slim black sedan. The glass was pitch black oddly, it was impossible to see the driver or anything inside of the car.

When he was close enough a door swung open, and he couldn’t stop the giddy feeling of time slowing down like the last time he was face to face with the vigilante. 

Atem was wearing sunglasses at night for some reason. He was also smiling at Yuugi, which looked even weirder than the sunglasses or his outfit.

“Yo.”

His greeting was weirder than the jackal mask on the passenger seat. Atem grabbed it to toss in the back seat to make space for Yuugi, motioning for him to come in. Yuugi took a deep breath, hoping to god no one was following them and thinking he was about to become an accomplice. 

Or worse, that Yuugi had been an accomplice all along. Oh god, what if he was being followed by the police force because his articles had been so good at describing Anpu’s crime history. He fought down the panic attack that wanted to take over, but another part of him was shaking with excitement to see what Atem had planned.

The adrenaline wasn’t helping him stabilize his emotions. He did his best to sit still when the car engine came to life. 

“Ok I need to turn on the radio or something, I’m going deaf from you screaming in your head.”

Yuugi didn’t have the urge to argue with Atem’s bizarre logic, turning on the radio to the evening dj’s playlist. He more or less knew what the other meant, Jounouchi also couldn’t stand how Yuugi’s anxiety was capable of filling a room. He would keep his cool so Atem could keep his cool, it was only considerate. They would need to be calm for things to work out tonight.

He stole a couple glances at Atem while he drove. He lazily controlled the wheel with one hand, the other dancing his fingers along the side of his seat discreetly in a way Yuugi recognized as stimming. It was a habit he himself was notorious for, one that used to get on Jounouchi’s nerves because Yuugi couldn’t stop his hands from constantly moving in some way. He didn’t know why he felt what could only be called warmth at thinking of Atem having similar tick. What else might they have in common was his second thought, but he didn't want to follow that trail lest he fall further into the rabbit hole of his emotions.

When he wasn’t staring at the other man he watched the passing buildings from the street. It felt awkward to ask questions before they got there, he figured Atem would explain what he needed to know and the rest would make itself apparent. 

“If you’re staring at me because of the sunglasses, it’s because the street lights bother my eyes when I’m in a car. You’re making me self conscious.” Atem said without turning his face.

Yuugi choked out a string of apologies, he didn’t mean to be so obvious in his gawking. It was true it was odd, but it made sense in it’s own way. The other was probably more used to driving with his dark shielded helmet. 

“You’re not from Japan, are you? Where’re you from?” Yuugi asked, he couldn’t help his curiosity. It was the first thing that had stuck to to him upon seeing the other’s face. It was impolite to make assumptions, but there was enough of an accent for Yuugi to pinpoint that Japanese wasn’t his first language, though he was perfectly fluent. 

“Egypt.” It was a one word response, but the way Atem said his mother country had enough weight to it that Yuugi could tell there was complex feelings behind it.

Yuugi let out an impressed sound. He was always fascinated with the middle east, and he should’ve been able to the tell the other’s features were distinct to the region.  
“And what brought you out here?” He was testing the waters to see how much the other was open to responding. Atem remained expressionless. 

“My father’s family business was ruined when I was 15. I lost everything, including my family. There was nothing left for me except my memories, so I moved forward and ended up here.” Atem said this as if he was describing the weather. Yuugi must’ve been making a face because the other broke into a small smile.

“I was young, I know, but it turned out alright. This is my home now and I love the people. That’s why I need to do this.” He said it with so much confidence Yuugi almost forgot what he was referring to included murder. Atem sounded as though he was in charge of a non profit. 

His conviction was firm like Yuugi’s. He found himself respecting the other man more, against his better judgement. 

How could someone who spoke like this and was smiling so gently at him capable of the things he’s done? Yuugi couldn’t believe that this was the man, he had to be mistaken. There was no way the man in the car with him could be the one who drove grown men to the point of begging for mercy.

Yuugi looked up to see I2's iconic logo brightly lit up at the top of the building. All the office lights were off except the main floors, most likely the security offices. He looked back over at Atem, the sunglasses were taken off. In that moment Yuugi could finally see how the man he met only once before was capable of killing. 

His eyes were a cold and calculated in contrast to the smile on his face. Smile wasn't a good descriptor, but Yuugi didn't know what else to call the curl of his mouth. There was something deranged and detached from his surroundings save for the building in front of him. Not even the building, what he was looking at went deeper than that. There was a target up there that he was seconds away from. He wasn't even thinking about how he was going to show Yuugi how he worked. He was focused on the prey he was about to chase.

Yuugi stopped breathing. The adrenaline was wearing off, and he couldn't deny the gravity of what was happening in front of him

Anpu was about to strike

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i may be able to write all this in one sitting, but know that it was not spur of the moment inspiration. my thanks goes to my friend megan for indulging in my constant burst of inspiration regardless of the time of day.


	4. Chapter 4

Yuugi sat on a desk reading through articles on his phone while Atem went to work on his laptop. The quick tapping of his typing was almost therapeutic, he internally complimented the other man on his ability to do it so quickly. Yuugi always thought he was the fastest on a keyboard, but he might’ve met his match. 

He did his best not to look at what Atem was doing lest he get interested or find out something he’d rather not know. It would be best to maintain as much ignorance as possible so when he was confronted it wouldn’t technically be a lie to say he was clueless. His curiosity was maddening, if all went well he didn’t know if he’d be able to stop himself from asking questions. 

Not that Atem would necessarily give him an answer, anyway. His face was concentrated on the screen with such intensity that the room could be burning and he wouldn’t notice. A smile broke on his face at what Yuugi could only assume meant he was ready to move. The mask was put on, the man disappeared into his role seamlessly. 

He didn’t say another word, he left so silently that Yuugi thought he wouldn’t have noticed if not for the fact that he was looking at him. 

The reporter went back to looking on his phone. He did not need to know where Atem was going. He was not an accomplice, nor was he ever interested in becoming one. A life of crime might be romantic for some, but he wasn’t that kind of a thrill seeker. 

There was someone tugging on his collar and clearing their throat. He turned his face up to see who was bothering him and he almost screamed when the nose of Atem’s mask almost collided with his own. 

“It’s a bad idea to stay in one place.” he said in a hushed tone. His voice was altered with the mask on, probably with encryption to hide what he sounded like. It was clever, Yuugi had to admit. He sounded almost feminine, leaning more towards androgynous. That accompanied with his slender frame gave the impression that he was genderless, a thoughtful way of preserving the mystery of Anpu lest anyone get lucky enough like Yuugi did to have a conversation with him. 

“I won’t get in the way?” Yuugi asked, looking at him puzzled.

“Not even if you tried to”, was his all too simple answer.

“What is that supposed to mean?” he replied with an indignant look. 

“Please don’t take this the wrong way, but I don’t think you would get the chance to stop me,” Again with the same self confidence, as if he somehow could read Yuugi’s moves easier than Yuugi could. 

Yuugi gave a grunt that didn’t particular constitute as a response so much as his way of saying he was done trying to find a way to reason with the man. He was getting the feeling reason wasn’t in his vocabulary and he felt a migraine forming. 

The elevator system was protected with locks, but Atem had a tool prepared that acted of a skeleton key of sorts. They were going up to the floor that Yuugi could only guess was where Pegasus’s office would be. He was interested in what he might find, even though he was hoping Pegasus didn’t turn out to be a villain in the grand scheme of his company. He made games for children and offered money at every opportunity to the less fortunate, the people wouldn’t be happy if he was hurt. 

Sure enough, they were walking down a corridor that lead to the company owner’s quarters. The door had higher security than the elevators, there was a guard casually flipping the page of a magazine in a small glass cubicle right next to the doorway. 

Yuugi was about to panic at the thought of being caught with Anpu red handed, but Atem seemed to be steps ahead of him. A sort of gas can was dropped and before he could scream Atem was putting a mask on Yuugi’s face. 

“Don’t make a sound.” Atem whispered.

Before the guard could even put his magazine down he was falling with a thud onto his desk. Yuugi could see cameras all along the hallway, but Atem snickered at his wandering eyes. 

“None of them are working.” 

Yuugi wanted to ask what in the world that meant but Atem was already walking away. He hoped a thorough explanation was given later so he didn’t have to leave the country at some point. He loved Japan too much to even consider starting a new life, he just finished paying off his grandfather’s mortgage on the game shop. He was about to take off the mask Atem had place on his head but hands gently went against his to stop it.

“You’ll need that for now, I’ll tell you when the air’s cleared.” Bright yellow eyes as narrow as slits stared at him, Atem’s mask not even moving when he spoke. Yuugi had no idea what was on his head right now, but he prayed it wasn’t half as creepy as Atem looked right now. 

He sighed before he gave way to following the dog shaped anti hero. He didn’t know why he remembered the costume having a tail and ankh bracelets at some point, maybe there had been a redesign at some point he wasn’t aware of. It’s not like it was a bad choice to drop those details, they were more gaudy than practical, though he would never tell the other man that. 

Already Atem was sitting at what Yuugi thought was Pegasus’s desk, making quick work of the passwords. He was on the main server now, looking through documents for....

Something. 

Yuugi walked around to take in all of the man he thought he admired’s working space. There were pictures of his family from varying business or charity events. Hanging over a bookshelf was a framed scene from one of Pegasus’s biggest moment, the day he opened Duelist Kingdom. Yuugi was only 16 at the time, but it was huge news to the world all over. An island where reigning champions of the card game from all over took part in a mortal combat of sorts tournament, and there was Pegasus at the head of his castle looking like the preened socialite he was.

He was standing with his hands on the shoulders of two boys. One of them Yuugi knew right away was his boss, Seto Kaiba, as a young boy. Even as a child he was still taller than some grown men, the same piercing cold blue eyes looked bored as his photograph was taken. The other boy Yuugi didn’t recognize back when the tournament was held, but he realized with chilling clarity that it was Atem.

He was....somehow even shorter back then, his hair was his biggest presence. He looked like a middle school compared to the older man and taller boy. He looked strangely sad, probably because he had gotten second place in that tournament.

It had been a huge scandal, the cameras that had been recording the entire tournament mysteriously shut off during the last match before Kaiba would get the grand prize of challenging the creator of his favorite card game. When the cameras went back on the match was finished, Atem on his knees as a shaking mess with Kaiba looking bitter despite having been victorious. 

No one knew what had happened during that match, but Atem was never seen in a duel monsters tournament again. It was odd because that tournament had been his first introduction into the competitive dueling world, and against all odds he had managed to get to the finals. Yuugi was a Kaiba fan back in those days, but he also was rooting for other less popular but well known faces, like Insector Haga or Mai Kujaku. Atem was an anomaly, somehow beating both of those seasoned players in duels that had Yuugi screaming with his friends while they watched the tv screen.

Yuugi looked back over to Atem, but he wasn’t at the computer anymore. He looked around, finding a painting that used to be hung on the wall had flipped open to reveal a tunnel. 

Against his gut telling him it was a bad idea, Yuugi started to walk through it to find the other man.

The walls of the passageway were lit with torches, it was all strangely archaic in design. He was mad he didn’t have his camera on him, it was interesting to see what Pegasus might have been hiding in his private life. He was still hoping in his heart it wasn’t something bad, but as he passed a skeleton’s remains sitting in a corner he realized that he’d have to give up on that. 

At the end there was a room with a giant vault that Atem was crouching in front of. He was using an electric torch of sorts to open the gears of the lock. It didn’t look like he had been there long, and it didn’t take him much more time to get through the final line of defense. 

He turned his head back to look at Yuugi, gesturing with a jerk of his neck for him to follow. Yuugi could feel himself slouching nervously as he went along. 

There was a final room that looked similar to Pegasus’s office, but much more flashy. There were countless antics and artifacts on display in glass cases, in addition to paintings and shelves of books that looked older than the building itself. There was a computer on the desk that Atem was already plopping himself in front of, this time inserting a flash drive into one of the slots on the side of hard drive. 

Yuugi went to look from behind, his curiosity finally getting the better of him. At this point he was guilty of breaking and entering, he might as well see what all this work was being done for. 

And there, he saw countless of files and reports covering every event I2 had ever run. Every plan, every meeting, every correspondence jotted down to the minute. All of it was transferred to Atem’s flash drive in seconds. 

Yuugi wanted to ask, but Atem beat him to it.   
“He’s planning another Duelist Kingdom.” He said in a whisper. Yuugi’s eyes widened, but he let him continue. He still didn’t see where the bad part was supposed to play in, but then there in front of him he saw an image of a boy that couldn’t be older than 8/9 being kept in a cell, chained by his ankles. 

It was disgusting, plain and simple. The boy looked like he’d been beaten and starved.

“He’s ransom. His older sister is the current champion of the East Side, the only way she would take part is if he’s returned, given she wins.”

Yuugi felt like he would pass out, suddenly getting dizzy. What the hell was happening?

“These tournaments are big business, I guess you never learned that with all your reporting.” It sounded almost venomous with the way Atem said it. It was still under his breath and difficult to hear, but Yuugi took in every word. He was upset because no one had bothered to look into these tournaments? Is that what Atem was after? But how did he know?

Then Yuugi felt like an idiot because of the picture he had seen moments ago, of Atem having been one of Pegasus’ tournament participants. What had Atem lost to have forced him to enter the tournament all those years ago?

He was about to ask, but then the computer screen was suddenly locking up. A cartoon rabbit was appearing, jumping around the screen screaming ‘Intruder Detected’ in a crude voice on repeat. 

Atem didn’t seem bothered, almost triumphantly pulling out his flash drive then grabbing Yuugi’s arm to lead him out.

They didn’t take the passage that led them in, Atem somehow know to kick aside one of the stone blocks that made the wall to reveal another passage. It was much more narrow, they both had to crouch just to move inside, but Yuugi felt it would be best to follow along.   
At the end of the tunnel, they were back in the main plaza of I2’s highest floor. The journalist looked away, trying to fight off an anxiety attack as he saw a flood of guards with guns. 

He looked over, hoping Atem had a plan of action.

The other man was looking around nervously exactly like himself a second ago, which made Yuugi nearly scream.

A part of his brain, probably the one that somehow managed to get him through college, took over, and it was his turn to pull Atem by the arm. 

He looked away, grateful that the guards still hadn’t looked over to their location. He saw an air vent close to the ceiling, and remembering every corny movie he made his friends watch him, Yuugi knew that for every opening there was an exit at the other end that would get them both out of the building. 

Atem followed his thought line with ease, placing his own hand on Yuugi’s arm to squeeze in what Yuugi was thinking was a thank you. 

The other man pulled out another gadget, prying open the vent, then pulling himself up with his arms to enter. Yuugi looked back, thanking every god possible that they still weren’t detected. 

He struggled slightly as he pulled himself up, crawling close behind the other man. 

After a couple minutes of silence, Yuugi thought they were far enough to start speaking again. He cleared his throat dramatically to make sure the other was paying attention.

“I hate to ask, but is it alright if I take this thing off now?” He heard a chuckle in front of him.

“Yes, we’re fine from here on out.”

They stopped for a moment to go back to looking slightly less ridiculous. At this point Yuugi looked at his mask to find out he had been given a cryptic looking Crocodile face, another Egyptian deity allusion. He handed it over to the other man, who folded it into a compartment in the side of his belt.

“You can stop doing that now.” There was an edge of playfulness in his voice that had the Journalist making a confused sound. 

Yuugi’s eyes jolted up to look into Atem’s.

“Stop doing what?” He looked especially distraught at the smirk Atem was giving him.

“Staring at my hips.”

Yuugi could feel himself choking while the other was already moving forward again.

If he wasn’t killed by a cop or a guardsmen tonight, he probably would die from this man.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Classes are over and I'm trying really hard not to give myself a stroke hoping I get an A. Please distract me with comments or kudos ToT they could be critiques too, i need mental stimulus.


	5. Chapter 5

“You really didn’t think this though, did you?”

“I was counting on you to do it for me. I thought you were supposed to be some kind of escape artist, don’t you do this all the time?” Yuugi could feel his eyes rolling when he replied. 

“Yes, but usually without an audience. Stop it with the anxiety attack, you’re making this more difficult than necessary.” Atem was trying not to huff. 

Yuugi grunted in annoyance, it was a tight fit and he didn’t know how they’d be able to get out after this point. He thought it would be like the movies where once you were in the vent system you could find an exit, but as he kept following paths he realized it was much more complicated. Atem decided to tell him until the last minute that it would’ve been better to have left through the back alley, but upon realizing it was screwed shut they would need to back track to their original path.   
In addition to the paths being hot and cramped, personal space was hard to maintain every time they had to switch leading positions. He doubted the vigilante would know how to get them out, but he was gesturing to him to follow along anyway.

Yuugi’s gut didn’t like having so many unknown variables, so he decided to voice his reasoning. “Why would going west help us out?” 

Atem looked back at him with a wink. “Intuition. They always tell young men to go west, right?”

Yuugi did his best not to roll eyes again, fine he’ll follow. It’s not like there wouldn’t be an ending point if they went down that line, he just hoped it wasn’t another dead end. 

He couldn’t help noting the man’s costume now that it was in closer range. It wasn’t quite leather, something shiny but malleable so he could move around as needed. There were two belts with compartments that held whatever tools Atem would need for his acts, then attached to his hip was his jackal mask. 

....He really needed to stop noticing his hips. He was still mortified at being caught by the other man. It didn’t help matters that the other was more amused than put off at being admired. Or maybe not, it was hard to tell when he was toying with him or being straight with his meaning. He was probably used to being the object of the room’s attention, he doubted having someone like Yuugi checking him out was anything unusual.

And great, now he felt like another pining loser. Yuugi hoped he was at least slightly a step up than just another admirer considering Atem let him know his identity at all. True, it was because Yuugi hadn’t given him any other option, but he didn’t need to give away so much of himself. 

Yuugi was glad to be helping him out. He was happy to curtail the other man’s more vicious tendencies in favor of more general punishments. 

They may not always end in longer jail time, but they were both content with at least ruining Pegasus’s company and his finances for a long time. It was a compromise, one that Yuugi was happy to help the other obtain. He may not know the full story of what happened to Atem, but he was glad he was allowed to see the data he had collected tonight. The vigilante said he would let Yuugi make his own full report once they were in the clear. It was with a slightly heavy heart that Yuugi would write his revelations of Pegasus’s less than flattering underground business, but this was the type of thing Yuugi promised himself he would do with his job.

He’d try to help the children who were being blackmailed right now before it was too late. And he’d do it in a way that didn’t involve Atem killing people. 

He let out a sigh of relief when he started to feel the night’s cool air, they were getting close to the outside. 

“I guess you were right, who knew your senses were on the mark.” Yuugi let his admiration come out in his tone, but Atem still felt indignant at being doubted in the slightest.

“I’m never wrong.” He said with the upmost conviction. 

“Oh?” Yuugi didn’t feel surprised, but he wanted to keep hearing his voice for no special reason. He just liked the sound of it, simple as that. 

“I knew you wouldn’t turn me in, didn’t I?”

Yuugi was starting to feel like he’d never get a straight response with anything from this increasingly frustrating man. 

“Can I ask how your intuition knew that?” He said in the nicest possible tone. 

There was no way Yuugi would expect the next words to come out of Atem’s mouth, but if he had been able to he probably wouldn’t have handled it any better. 

“You have a crush on me.”

At that Yuugi almost crashed into the other man’s body from losing his attention. Atem had halted to start shimmying himself out of the vent opening, but he didn’t seem too annoyed at Yuugi’s close contact.

“It’s not cute pretending to be so conceited.” Yuugi stated a bit too harsh. He didn’t mean for the biting retort, but he could feel the blood rushing to his face. He didn’t like being made fun of. 

Atem was unfazed. “I’m not, it’s been quite flattering to have someone like you making this much of an effort”, was his reply. 

Yuugi felt like he was choking. He hated how much it felt like the other was always making some inside joke at his expense. They’re both grown ass men, couldn’t he cut the flirting? Oh god, they were flirting weren’t they...

They were on the ground, Atem looking at him with clear mischief in his eyes. It felt like he was his favorite toy half of the time. 

“Why not we get out of the sweats and grab a bite? I feel like I need a drink and you’ve skipped too many meals being my side kick.” The shorter man asked. Yuugi snorted.

“I am not your side kick. My job is to get the truth out to people, you just happen to be a part of that right now.” Was his short response. And maybe he wanted to learn more about Atem along the way, he thought to himself. 

“Of course, you’re working right now. How could I forget?” The other replied. 

He tried not to stare too much at Atem unzipping what could only be called a cat suit. He had a tank top and pants underneath his costume for a quick civilian look. Yuugi didn’t mind staying in his button up and pants, they may have been sweat stained and crumpled at this point but he didn’t care if he looked disheveled. He needed a beer and a burger. 

“I doubt anything you’re used to eating at is open at this hour, but there’s a joint a couple streets over if you don’t mind diner food.” Yuugi offered. 

He was glad the smirk went away from the Egyptian’s face. Yuugi preferred his genuine smiles more than any of his expressions. He might’ve been sweaty and with black circles under his eyes but he was still probably the most beautiful thing Yuugi had seen. 

“I don’t, actually, it’s perfect. You wouldn’t happen to remember where the car was left, would you?” He really almost thought the other was into him with how soft his voice was right now. 

Managing not to get distracted, Yuugi couldn’t fight down his laughter.

“No, you’ll just have to walk like the rest of us.” They can worry about their get away later, Yuugi thought to himself. There was no point saying it out loud, Atem was used to sticking around sometimes for days at the scene of the crime. He somehow knew just when the timing was right to slip away, and Yuugi admired the way his mind worked for that reason. 

“That’s fine. I love the view.” Atem said with his eyes glittering. 

Yuugi looked up at the crescent moon and the flecks of stars that could be found with the city’s light pollution blocking out most of them.

“It’s ok, I guess. It’s not the best since we’re so far in the city, it’s better when you get up into the mountains--” Yuugi began to say before stopping mid sentence. 

His eyes jerked over when he heard the other’s snickering.

“I wasn’t talking about the sky.”

Before his thoughts could catch up, Atem was already walking down the block

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> short chapter, next one will probably go back to the longer format
> 
> idk what to do, i just want classes to start again :/ :/ :/


	6. Chapter 6

Yuugi tore into his burger without much mind for grace or composure. He wasn't concerned with how Atem would think of him at this moment in time, though it didn't seem like the other was bothered. He was scooping from the remnants of his milkshake with a spoon while scrolling through Yuugi's laptop with his freed hand, the notes Yuugi had taken on the other side of his elbow for quick viewing. The journalist had written up a report before he had his first beer so that Atem would get a chance to look it over before it began the publication process. Kaiba's approval was something Yuugi didn't need much anymore, grateful for being a senior member in his workplace so he had enough freedom to get things out without having to wait for bureaucratic approval.

It was hard to deal with the aftershock once the twosome was walking towards the diner. Thoughts were buzzing around at possibly being a criminal, also the dark nature of a man who was supposed to be a leading figure of joy for children. He was infuriated looking over the data more carefully, finding accounts of Pegasus's self pity when his lover died the least worthy of sympathy. He was a murderer and the number of children whose lives he had ruined weighed more heavily over the ones he had helped. The writer wanted to make something that wouldn't get distorted by other media outlets once everything was published, but he knew these things were complicated. 

He was praying the easy conviction the police would be able to do would be enough to prove the man's guilt to the public. He was being naive, but it was difficult not to hope for the best case scenario. Yuugi was doing the same in regards to hoping the police didn't convict him of a crime or figure out how he had gathered all of the data. Maybe the other man had tried to be reassuring when he said it was alright for Yuugi to react strongly after this kind of experience, but it felt like an insult on his pride. He knew the other man didn't mean it that way, but Yuugi was almost 30. He had been to third world countries and watched people die in front of him, but there was something different now that he wasn't working through a heavily legalized network. He was ashamed he couldn't compose himself for those reasons, including the one in his heart where he had a hard time accepting that the bad guy he was hunting down wasn't already a common knowledge bad guy. Atem said he would be able to take care of getting him an alibi easily enough if the occasion needed it down the line, but that didn't soothe Yuugi's nerves until he had alcohol in his mouth. 

Things got easier after Yuugi had his second beer, but the third was mostly so he would knock out as soon as he got home. It was nice not being the driver for once, though he was sure he wasn't so drunk he couldn't operate a vehicle if the situation needed it. His head was at a gentle sway now, so he could take in his surroundings again.

Yuugi was alright with the silence that had fallen upon them once his mind was at ease, it wasn't uncomfortable or tense. He felt like he didn't need to nervously fill the air in with words, Atem's quiet stoicism being a comfort in it's own way. It was weird, he was ok with how the other would stare off into space for a couple minutes before focusing on the task in front of him again. His face was almost robotic in its lack of emotion when he was working seriously but it wasn't off putting.

Maybe Yuugi would never find his face off putting though. He would need to be careful with himself or he'd accidentally get swayed into believing murder was justified. 

It was another naive thought, he was too old for that to work, but he still wanted to keep himself prepared for the time when he would need to be doing this against the man sitting in front of him. 

Hopefully Atem thinking Yuugi's feeling were enough of a reason to keep him at bay would give the journalist the opening he needed down the line.

.....and now he felt slimy. He chugged the rest of his drink then quickly finished off his burger, feeling heartburn from too many sources to deal with. Red eyes met his own when he glanced up to face the man in front of him. Before he could ask if the other was finished he was handed back his materials. Atem closed his eyes as a preamble to his verdict,

"I like to think I helped improve your writing," he was smiling now as he spoke, "but my one concern is will you be alright with publishing this."

Yuugi snorted, his manners went out the door at this level of substance in his system. "I've been a professional longer than you've been around. There's never a moment where you don't think you're special, huh?"

Atem opened his eyes to glare lightly. "Maybe not with everyone. But one person is more than enough, no?" he said it with the upmost emphasis so Yuugi wasn't allowed to play dense. 

By all means keep being that way, Yuugi thought to himself. It made his job easier if he could find reasons to cool the warmth he felt when he was around the other. 

He really hated this. He had half a mind to ask if the other knew any shadow magic that worked by making statements about people that came true right after. That had to be the only reason, Yuugi didn't feel attracted to him this much before the other started the stupid idea that he was attracted to him at all. He was choosing to ignore the part of his brain sober enough to yell he was admitting to himself this was attraction when he should still be denying it for the trick it felt like. 

But then there was Atem looking at him softer now, with what he wanted to believe was concern and Yuugi felt at peace once again. He lowered his gaze to the table, still feeling Atem's eyes on him.

"Please try to relax, I'll take you home now if you like. Or if you want to stay at a hotel for a little while until things die down at I2, I can pay for it," Atem looked at him carefully while he continued, "It looks like you could use some time away."

Yuugi didn't like where his mind went at the prospect of sharing a hotel room. He really didn't like how when he shyly looked up the other had a smile that looked like he was fighting the urge to laugh at the light red Yuugi was sure he was turning.

"It's fine, I can go home. It'd look suspicious if I disappeared the morning it happened" Was his simple answer. It was true, and he didn't like disappearing without telling his grandfather first. The man was too old to be alone without a family member a phone call away. 

"Then we should leave now." The journalist was grateful to hear the detached professionalism that had returned to Atem's voice, he couldn't stand a game of cat and mouse while they were in the car together or anywhere for that matter. 

They stood up, Atem not letting Yuugi cover for himself with the bill. He was starting to wonder if the other was setting up a honey trap. Maybe the crush quip was meant to mess with his head for more nefarious reasons. Yeah, that would make sense given how well Atem was at masking his true nature hours ago. His mind was getting less buzzed by the minute as he started to carefully consider everything that had went down tonight.

There was always another face lying beneath the surface of every man. There already had been 3 he'd seen with this one, and only one of them was close to being his true face. But there was still more to it, that realization giving another spike of sobriety when he realized even that deranged smile from before was a mask to keep Yuugi from seeing the whole picture. 

The car wasn't far away, and before Yuugi could say no the other was driving past the subway onto the highway. He was relieved his body was still buzzed enough to make it look like he was just sleepy with him slouching in the passenger seat. He didn't dare look at Atem while he drove. Yuugi didn't recall telling him where he lived, trying to fight down the sobering chill when he realized the other knew where he lived. The drive felt too short, he knew which exit to take, then the right streets to get to the game shop in the most timely manner. This time the quiet had a heavier air that didn't go away when Yuugi saw the familiar front of his home. He unbuckled himself and grabbed his belongings, looking over when the other placed a hand on his arm before Yuugi could leave the car.

"Feel free to contact me anytime you want to play again." He was choosing not to react to the fear Yuugi was radiating. Nor did he act offended when Yuugi didn't respond to him saying good night before departing.

Yuugi didn't sleep, he couldn't keep his eyes from opening at random intervals while he tried to find a comfortable position to at least rest his body until he had to leave for work. Nothing was working at calming his nerves. 

Atem wasn't a stranger to this neighborhood, he knew the streets as well as any resident. He pretended not to be familiar with the lay out the night they had met. 

What kind of situation had he put himself in?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the long break and short-ish chapter ToT I'm working almost full time and taking 19 units again because I'm some kind of a masochist. It's a tough road to being an engineer, but since konami won't allow Yuugi to ever grow up (the cowards) I must do it for him.
> 
> Thank you for all the kind comments and the kudos, I appreciate each one. I haven't given up on this story, I promise!


	7. Chapter 7

Yuugi was in bed, but he couldn't sleep. It'd been weeks since he last spoke to Atem, but he wasn't able to stop thinking about what had happened. 

The other man had tricked him, he walked right into a trap after he kept telling himself not to get tricked. It hurt his self esteem pretty bad, he didn't know what to do with himself. He thought he was old enough not to let this happen again and he felt like he could die just from how foolish he had made himself look.

He didn't know whether to call Atem and demand direct answers, or wait for him to come along for their next meet up. He was losing his mind, how did the other man deal with this kind of thing? Did he also think too much about Yuugi and wonder what the journalist was doing when they weren't together?

Yuugi's gut said he didn't, he didn't seem like the type to worry about anything. Atem was Mr. Perfect Serial Killer, after all. He made the police look like idiots. He proved he could do the same to Yuugi without even trying very much. 

Yuugi had enough of this, it was driving him crazy. He couldn't stand mind games, manipulation angered him because it was his biggest weakness. He trusted too hard, he was naive and he thought everything was black and white. How could he possible stand up to Anpu when people with way more experience couldn't?

He had gotten arrogant from his writing. Atem was building him up so he would think he was special and stupidly follow him around. He had become his side kick in what were very illegal actions, ones that might be enough for Yuugi to lose his job and/or go to prison for a very long time.

He was getting overheated, his thoughts were way too loud. He couldn't do this any more, the days were getting harder and his work was suffering because of it. His most recent article was decent at best, but he could tell Kaiba was getting disappointed. Yuugi could do better than some 2 page last minute article about the history of Sudoku. 

Yuugi sighed to himself, looking at his phone that had been in his hand since he went underneath the covers. It was almost 12, but he couldn't get himself to relax. 

He had to do something, and without letting his mind catch up to instinct, Yuugi was scrolling down to the Dentist in his contact list. 

It didn't take long for there to be an answer, and Yuugi couldn't stop the small squeak that made it's way out of his mouth when he was greeted by a husky voice. 

“H-hello?” glorious, absolutely perfect Yuugi, the journalist thought to himself. He was the king of smooth. 

“Hello? Yes?” was the other's sleepy sounding reply. Yuugi didn't know why the novelty of Atem also being a person who needed sleep made him feel light headed.

“Uh, hi Atem. H-how's it been, we haven't talked in a little while,” Yuugi stated as simple as he could. He might as well be honest, it worked last time he talked to the vigilante. 

“It's been good, Pegasus is miserable”, there was a light chuckle that made Yuugi picture perfectly in his mind the other man's smile, the one where his eyes would close and it looked like he was in a dream like state. “But I couldn't have done it without you. I might have to find a way to pay you, if you'd like.”

Yuugi swallowed before he could find his voice, raising as much of his courage as he could.

“That's very nice, but we're even. I've wanted to know what you do for a long time, I couldn't ask you for more.”

“Oh?”

“Really, I can't. I've got enough material to last me a while before your next move.”

More laughing, his voice practically dripped with amusement. 

“I didn't think I made you think about Sudoku.”

Yuugi wanted to die. He wanted to die so badly.

“Ha ha, kind of. I mean, you always leave game motifs, and some of your victims said they could never play games again because of you.”

It got quiet after that. Yuugi realized that he'd struck a nerve, so he tried his best to be damage control to his own error.

“It's not that I mean you're a bad guy, just you like games and I like games so...I think about games when I think about you.”

This time Atem's voice was soft, but serious.

“That....that makes me really happy.”

Yuugi thought he was talking to a lost child now. He didn't know the other was sensitive, it was something he'd have to keep as a note to himself. Don't push too hard, or he'll fall apart. He was a delicate little...murderer? Escape artist? Yuugi didn't know what to call Atem anymore. Maybe he was just Atem, plain and simple. 

“It makes me happy that you're happy,” It was something that came out like word vomit, but Yuugi didn't regret it. The other man needed support right now.

“Do you want to hang out again?”

Yuugi did his best not to jump out of bed right now, he answered too quickly. 

“Yes!”

He was beet red when he heard the other's laughter again. It's fine, he preferred him laughing than the weak voice from before that sounded like he needed his mother. 

“I'm glad, are you free tonight?”  
“I mean...sure, why not, but aren't we breaking a rule here?”

“We are?”   
“Shouldn't we move a little slower?”

“I didn't know I was asking you out on a date, but if you really want it to be one I don't mind either.”

“I'm not!!--”

“It's ok, I like you too. Come outside in 20 minutes, I'll pick you up. Look cool for me again.”

“I didn't!!!!!!!!”  
“I'll see you soon partner!”

Yuugi wanted to die. This could not be happening. This was terrible, he didn't want to pick out an outfit at this hour, but the damage was done.

He had a date with a murderer with the emotional maturity of a teenager.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ngl, I was laughing at myself the entire time with this one. I love this story even though I have no idea where I'm going with it lmao


	8. Chapter 8

Yuugi was wearing an outfit that Anzu used to call his 'I'm not into bondage but I could be' look. He needed to call her, they hadn't talked in months and he wanted to know how things were going with the girl she met at one of her concerts. He was happy she was living life to her fullest now that she was free to be in America and not worry about a lonely boyfriend who needed a text message a day. 

He was being hard on himself, he knew it and Anzu said being with him will always be a special time in her life. The fact that it wasn't weird at all when they decided to end things made Yuugi happy, they easily went back to how they were in their high school days where Anzu was his protective sister figure. But now he was worried how he could even begin to tell her about his own step back into the dating world. 

He was waiting for Atem's text, Yuugi was still trying not to be creeped out at how much the other man pretended not to know things. He was dangerous, and Yuugi promised himself he would never forget that. 

He contemplated drinking, but decided against it since he couldn't afford to be mentally compromised. If he was drunk, who knew what he might let slip out that Atem could use for future reference.

Not that the other man would black mail, he didn't think. It was starting to feel like the other really wasn't interested in hurting Yuugi physically, but then what did he feel Yuugi was. 

Play time in between his attacks? It gave him heart burn to consider it. 

His phone buzzed, and he saw the familiar 'Dentist' appear on his messages. He didn't need to look at the message to know what it would say, walking outside into the night air to find one of the familiar vehicles Atem owned. 

Yuugi was surprised to find that Atem wasn't with any mode of transportation, he was standing on the side walk of the game shop staring at the 'Turtle Game shop' sign on the side of the door. Without turning his head to Yuugi, he spoke first.

“Cards, toys, board games, and more? I'm surprised I never came here.”

Yuugi was giving him a weirded out look, the other man finally turning to face him. He smiled when he did look at Yuugi fully. 

“If this was any other night I'd be happy to take you anywhere, but you might want to change. We already went to a place without standards when you picked.”

The journalist was realizing that Atem didn't say things to be mean, but he said things that were mean. It didn't hurt his feelings, but looking at the other man up and down he was wondering what kind of bougie place did the other man want to take him to? He was in a suit one step down from being a tuxedo, it was a dark red that almost looked like purple. Burgundy? He didn't know the word, but it looked really nice in contrast to the man's bright red eyes. They looked slightly more overdone than usual, he didn't know why the other needed to wear makeup when it looked like his eyelashes were already really long. 

Sighing, Yuugi almost went back inside but then he felt his inner gentleman kicking in that was screaming at him for almost leaving the other man outside. Against his better judgment, he asked Atem carefully,

“Do you want to wait inside?”

He was not happy at the way the inside of his chest felt when the other smiled wider and his eyes crinkled.

“Only if you trust me.”

That was a trap. Every part of him was screaming it was a trap, but maybe Atem playing dumb could work in his favor. Or the other man already calculated Yuugi playing dumb, so he was playing dumb first so that it canceled out. What do you call it when both parties are equally pretending to be ignorant? Does that constitute as them just being plain stupid?

He wanted to know where this could go, and it probably was going to hurt both of them down the line if it did turn out there was at least a half genuine portion to the question. Yuugi didn't know if he preferred the other having no interest at all.

“Get in, it's the middle of the night. I don't want to hear you missed an important mission because I got you sick.”

Atem laughed at his joke, which if Yuugi was a stupid teenager right now he'd already be in love because a pretty boy laughed at all his terrible jokes. But he was a stupid adult man, and as a stupid adult man he was...

Taking the other man's hand softly and bringing him inside his home, where his grandfather was asleep upstairs and his parents would come visit every holiday. Letting him sit in the living room where he spent most of his time editing papers or watching game shows with his friends. Letting him into his life, in all it's vulnerabilities.

Yuugi didn't want to look him in the face until after he came back downstairs, but he knew the other was smiling in a way that would've answered Yuugi's question on what his true face was. He didn't feel ready to look into his eyes for that moment, not yet. Not until he knew everything and he was comfortable cutting all ties. 

He came back down slightly under dressed now, but Kaiba would give him a free pass on a casual suit for special events, he hoped Atem would too. The other man whistled suggestively and Yuugi wanted nothing more than to throw whatever was closest to him at his head.

“Alright, you're driving.”

Yuugi gave him a puzzled look, “Why me?”

Atem was still smiling, “Because I don't own a car.”  
Oh, he was undercover. Atem wasn't Anpu right now, he was Atem the civilian. And apparently that meant he had no method of transportation.

“I'm guessing you came here with a cab?”

“I've lived in Japan most of my life, there's no need for owning a car unless you do dangerous work, no?”  
He tilted his head slightly and Yuugi glared in response. He was right, and it annoyed him.

They drove in silence, Atem passing him a card with the address to a place Yuugi had never been to but sounded familiar, he recognized the area at the very least. It was close to where Kaiba's mansion was, the more uptown portion of Domino. 

A part of Yuugi wanted not to have changed solely because he knew it from experience once he handed over his car to the valet. This was the place he accidentally went on a date with Kaiba many years ago, back when they were rivals in school and Yuugi didn't realize that's how Kaiba courted people. 

It ended badly, the taller man picking Yuugi up by his collar demanding answers as to how he could be that dense and show up to a place in a t-shirt and denim jacket. Yuugi honestly thought they were going to get food then go to Kaibaland as friends, almost in hysterics at the idea of dating someone who had hurt his family and friends their freshman year. Kaiba didn't talk to him for almost a year. Anzu and Jounouchi laugh at him to this day.

The memories came flooding back, and it left a weird feeling in Yuugi's stomach. Maybe he should've been setting up 'Anpu' with his boss, but who knows. Maybe this will also end in upsetting terms and Atem will give up on his interest in the journalist. 

Or Yuugi gets killed tonight. Whatever comes to the murderer's mind first, seeing as how he went further than Kaiba ever did with his threats. 

They had a table in what Yuugi could only guess was a VIP space, they were away from other guests. It was surprisingly full even though it was almost 1 am. 

Yuugi looked at the menu he was given, not having any idea what was edible but Atem didn't let him order even his own drink. He was starting to give Yuugi the impression of a control freak, but he shouldn't have been surprised. The man honestly thought he was better equipped to protect the city than the police force, he had to have some level of distorted thinking. 

It was uncomfortably silent while they waited, Atem looking out at the window, the ceiling, his hands. Everything except for Yuugi's face.

He looked like he was lost. Yuugi cleared his throat, now realizing he was probably better socialized than the person in front of him. 

“So, what do you do for a living Atem?”, might as well go for the kill and find out his civilian life, was Yuugi's thought process. It'd make for interesting details once he had the full story published. 

“I'm a trust fund brat, but I work as a librarian to keep myself out of the house.”

Yuugi didn't know how to respond to that. Right, his entire family was dead. He decided it would be best to avoid any other subject related to family, but he was curious now where exactly Atem worked. Had he maybe accidentally met the other before? He went to Domino's library often for research, but he never really paid much attention to the people at the reception desk. Why would he, there were self check out machines. 

For all Yuugi knew, Atem might've been watching his every move before he became Anpu. 

“That's interesting, so I take it you're a book worm then.” 

“Depends on the subject, but yes. I volunteered when I was in high school to make up for all the rules I broke, and I never left the place.”

Yuugi was relieved when he saw the waiter coming back. They ate in silence, Yuugi grateful to have something else to focus on while he tried to steady his thoughts.

So Atem had been in Domino for a lifetime, knew of Yuugi before Yuugi knew of him most likely, and went to high school here. Yuugi wasn't popular by any means, but he had to know. How far back was it possible he was being watched. 

He downed his steak with the wine the other man had chosen. There weren't any complaints to be made, everything was perfect and he didn't realize he was hungry. 

Now to find out if he had a childhood stalker. 

“I went to Rintama, but I got my diploma early so I could go to University as quick as possible. I hated high school, you've probably been in that position I'm sure.”

Yuugi nodded, relieved. Or the other was lying to make Yuugi feel relieved. Yuugi would lose his mind by the end of the evening, freaking out about every possible meaning there was to their conversation.

Maybe Atem read the fear on his face, because without any prompting he was pulling out his phone to show a picture of a teenage version of himself with what Yuugi assumed were his friends.

They didn't look friendly, they looked like the type of people Jounouchi and Honda hung around until they realized the delinquent life was stupid. If Yuugi thought he had a ridiculous fashion sense when he was in grade school, Atem put him to shame. He didn't look scary per se, his face was as child like but there was something unsettling about it. 

But Yuugi should feel relieved, Atem did not know of him until after he became a journalist. 

Atem took a sip of his drink, almost finishing it in one swing. Someone got as happy as Yuugi did when he didn't have to drive, huh. 

“Actually, I'm a bit of a fan of your work, Yuugi.”

Yuugi didn't roll his eyes, but he wanted to. He would be polite, even if this felt like a fake date. 

“I'm flattered, what subjects were you into?”

“It's hard to say, I like the ones with games but I like rereading the ones where you try to keep people informed.”, he said simply. 

Yuugi glared, but it softened when he saw Atem wasn't being an ass. Maybe he was, but not in a malicious way. He let the other man continue. 

“You're very passionate, I can tell you want the city to bring people justice. It's refreshing to read a source that's comfortable with presenting the facts unbiased but still able to define when something's wrong.” the vigilante was looking at him with an equal amount of care. Yuugi felt like he was being studied, he didn't know if it was meant in an honest to goodness attracted way but it felt like it. When the other put a hand on one of his closed fists on the table it felt like electricity. Against his better judgment, he let himself reciprocate the gesture, matching the other man's grip. 

He was letting Yuugi look right at him. As if the shock from being touched by the other man burst wires in his head, he felt connections being made that he never saw before. 

Yuugi would write about a terrible person getting away with terrible things, maybe a month or two later there was news the terrible person had a terrible accident. 

Was he??? Someone the vigilante respected? It didn't feel like it when they spoke, Yuugi thought he was being laughed at for being dense in most of their interactions. 

Maybe he judged himself too harshly again. 

“I appreciate it.” he somehow managed to push the words out while it felt like his throat was closing.

He could feel a smile on his face, when he noticed Yuugi tried to go back to keeping himself steady.. But without thinking he was letting the other get closer. 

“I mean it, I admire your work. I keep it in our archives even when they tell us to throw out old news. I read it and I feel relief because someone honest to goodness cares and it makes me think that I don't have to be scared of people.”

Atem wasn't smiling, he was completely serious. There was no other face except his own, and Yuugi hated what he saw because he would never be able to arrest the man in front of him now.

“It gives me hope that people aren't as bad as I thought they were and...it makes me want to be a better person.”

Atem was sad, and lonely. There was something yearning and eager in the way he spoke that really made Yuugi think he almost cared and he could feel himself forgetting that this was a person who thought he was above the law, not a broken hearted soul. His grip tightened on Yuugi like he was afraid the other would run away, and Yuugi felt disgusted in himself for falling for it. Forget falling for it, he was pulling the other close to catch his mouth with his own, tasting wine and something unmistakably distinct to him. His other hand kept Atem's head in place, tipping him slightly so he could get his tongue down his throat. The logical part of his brain shut off for a minute, preferring to take smug satisfaction in getting an upper hand for the first time with the vigilante. 

Yuugi's eyes snapped open when he realized what he was thinking. He pulled away quickly, too quick, leaving the other left blinking widely, looking as though he still couldn't process what just happened. Yuugi coughed, grabbing his drink again then downing the rest of it, suddenly not hungry for anything else but feeling like he was on fire. 

He needed to get away from him or he'd do something he'd regret.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Me: man I can't wait for classes to start so I can focus  
also Me: im going to write another chapter when I should be studying for two exams this week and getting ahead with homework


	9. Chapter 9

Atem had never been particularly adept at courtship in any degree, let alone honey potting. Not for the opposite gender or the same, not even when it was meant to be a casual fling. It was why it made his job easier just to isolate himself and pretend he wasn't flesh and blood. 

He stared carefully at the increasingly hard to read journalist who'd been on his trail for over a year now. He really didn't expect to have the other grabbing him in a desperate kiss, only to go back and pretend it never happened. 

Atem didn't know if he should play along. He felt like he'd been set on fire, feeling way too warm in his suit. Maybe the other was catching on to the fact that Atem was bluffing 9 times out of 10 and meant to call him out on it. Or potentially up the stakes, but then how far would it go? Did he really want to know? 

He asked the waiter for a refill, if he was going to live through the night with the other being difficult he needed to be buzzed. Yuugi was driving anyway, he was much more relaxed and smooth when behind the wheel and not chasing after criminals. He downed the second as quick as his first, but he still wasn't light headed enough to where he couldn't take care of himself. It was annoying to admit, but he was too worked up to relax now. 

Before he could stop him, Yuugi paid the bill. That wasn't part of the plan either, and he found himself becoming increasingly aware that the other was getting closer to seriously treating this like a romantic evening. What really wasn't helping matters was how he didn't know how to approach the subject so he decided to also pretend nothing happened.

It was the easiest thing they could possibly do. He didn't think further into it until he realized Yuugi was waiting for him to tell him where he should be dropped off.

“Did you hear me?”, he was giving him that annoyed look again. So impatient...

“If I said no, would you kick me out?”

“Just tell me where to go, don't you have a job too?”

“Yes but it's easier for me to get away with naps than yours.”

He made it too easy, a part of him did genuinely want to bring him back to his apartment. Not for anything other than letting him have an idea of his base for future missions, but he decided it was worth riling him up one more time tonight.

“If you want to go to my place that badly, all you had to do was ask.”

He was pulling the car key out of the other man's hand while he choked over himself. It felt too satisfying to be back in control. 

It was a quiet drive, he got a weird sense of pride in glancing at how the other would glare at him from time to time when he wasn't looking out the window. He liked that the other was keeping his distance, it told him he was cautious and he couldn't help respecting it. If it were easy, Atem would've lost interest the first night. 

He parked underground, guiding Yuugi up to his apartment before the other could protest that he really should be getting home.

“You can stop pretending now, I wanted to show you my next plan.”

Oh....he might have to rethink his strategy, the other looked genuinely hurt at that. He pretended it didn't affect him. He was lying only to himself, but Yuugi didn't need to know that. Not yet, at least.

“Right, great acting.”

“I'll forgive you for getting lost in your role.”

This time he got a legitimate glare, if he didn't know for a fact that this one was a pacifist he would be sure that look was meant to say 'Drop dead'. 

He was relieved once they were inside the other man was back to his work, taking in his home with mental notes. It was deliberately unremarkable, it could be any single adult male's room. Yuugi's eyes widened to the corner, trying to stop himself from crying out in fear when he saw golden eyes looking from the darkness of an open hallway. 

“Don't mind her, she's just glad I'm home. Come here, Mana.”

That was not a dog. That was too big and wild looking, Yuugi almost thought it was a coyote but considering the motif of the other, he realized quickly that was an actual, breathing jackal. Atem was glad he caught on quick. 

“She was the only one I couldn't leave behind when I moved”

“I can see that...”

She didn't dislike Yuugi, he probably smelled slightly like Atem from all the time the two had spent together. Atem scratched behind a pointed ear, before telling her to go back to bed in his language. He looked back up at Yuugi, relishing the dumb, jaw dropped face. 

“You're not going to my bedroom, so don't worry about her.”

“Right, what did you want to show me?”

They were sitting at his couch so he could pull up his laptop and show Yuugi his plans. 

His real goal with I2 wasn't Pegasus directly, it was the company's greater scheme. Stopping them from monopolizing the gaming industry while hurting innocent people along the way. 

It had been an ongoing task for Atem for the past couple of years, he didn't expect to become famous after his first year thanks to the reporter's work. His articles were interesting, Atem would think he was a villain too if he weren't himself already.   
He had a craft for reading between the lines, and Atem couldn't stop himself from admiring it. He was still amazed the other kept following him, he almost almost believed he really was starting to warm up to him.

Almost

“The people you've...taken care of---”

“Yes, they were all involved.”

“And you never thought to go to the police first?”

It was his turn to glare. He didn't know why the insinuation pissed him off more than anything else Yuugi had said, but he slammed his laptop shut louder than he intended on. Maybe the alcohol was finally kicking in, or he was at his limit of the other's attitude. 

“Let me make one thing clear to you, this was a last resort. I didn't want to do anything for anyone, but no one was willing to stand up and say 'this is wrong'. No one wanted to, so I'll be the bigger monster and take care of things my way. 

I didn't need your judgment then, and I don't want it now either. If you want to turn me in, then do it now. Otherwise, don't get involved.”

The other man was...smiling? He looked like he just won a long held competition. 

“So now you're honest? I'm glad we're getting somewhere. I'm not here to judge anyone, I said killing people is wrong. If you didn't have a guilty conscience, you wouldn't have spoken of yourself that way. You're not very happy with yourself are you?”

Atem did his best not to growl, he was sure the reason the other's smile got wider was because his own expression was getting darker by the minute. 

“I do what I have to do, and if it pisses you off that I've gotten more done in a shorter time than you have in your entire career...”

He stopped when he realized he was being laughed at. It took all his will power not to chuck his laptop at the other man's head, so he let him talk first.

“You're getting really offended by this, aren't you? I have to ask, it's because you do feel guilty, isn't it.”

"Stop talking now."

"If you don't like killing people, then don't do it."

"Because everything is so simple? Because everything is just good or bad, so I'm a bad guy killing other bad guys, is your thinking. God forbid someone have a different idea of how to deal with things your police are too cowardly to do."

"You're making this sound more philosophical than it needs to be."

There was a glaring match at this point, and Atem really felt for the first time since their first meeting that this man was a threat. 

"Next time I should run to Domino's perfect writer, I'm sure."

"I'd be glad to show you better ways to deal with your emotions, so yes maybe you should be getting help instead of pretending you're the only one competent enough to do anything. I'll tell you what, I'm going to be the only one who does turn you in, but not until the end. I won't let anyone else get close to you until then."

Atem felt odd again, he wasn't used to being afraid of others. The last time he legitimately feared for himself was when he first met Pegasus, but there was something else about the way Yuugi talked to him that was off putting. He was offering him protection under the guise of a threat. It left an odd feeling in his stomach. 

"Are you trying to bargain with me?" he blinked at the journalist, hoping to make some sense of the words he kept saying.

Yuugi was smirking at him, and by force of habit he found himself mirroring the gesture. 

"I'll help you, but you need to promise me one thing. No more bodies, no new addition to your counter. If you can do that one thing, then I'll do whatever you need me to do. Even if that means backing off."

"And why should I take your word? Why do you think you're in any place to demand anything when we both know taking you out of the picture isn't difficult."

"Because you have a crush on me."

Now he was livid, his smirk went away as quickly as it came in favour of glaring at the man again. He did not get to throw his words in his face like that, especially not while laughing at him.

"Shut up, you've been getting way too ballsy just because of one fake tag along and it's pissing me off--"

"It wouldn't if it wasn't true, I'm not even trying to get under your skin that much. You don't want me for an enemy, you've made that clear at this point. Tell me again, which articles were your favou---"

He wasn't shutting up, so Atem did the first thing that came to mind. He pulled him in for a kiss not too different from the one the other sucker punched him with earlier. He took it further, pulling the other on top of him so they were laying on the couch. He wrapped one of his legs around Yuugi's hip so he couldn't get away, but it looked like he had other ideas. 

His wrists were grabbed then raised above his head, he looked up to the other man licking his lips after pulling away. He was looking at him differently now, Atem felt like he might be the one going too far. He wasn't scared, he could overpower him in a second if he really wanted to. 

But before he could say anything, he was being picked up and walked to his bedroom.


	10. Chapter 10

Yuugi tried for what felt like the hundredth time not to think about what had happened last week. It did not count, it was not something he should put thought into, it was to be promptly forgotten because it was not supposed to mean anything.

Yuugi was pissed at himself in the morning when he realized what he had done, and saw the other man grinning at him from the other side of the room with coffee. The journalist left without his pride or his dignity in tact, and to be quite frank he hated the idea of how the other was perfectly fine letting Yuugi do whatever he wanted when he lost his mind for the remainder of the evening. He even had fresh clothes he could borrow for work so he didn't have to shamefully face his grandfather in the morning.

Yuugi was confused, and he was pretty sure the other man was too considering how quickly he went from anger to submission. He didn't want to think further into the meaning behind it, because he was pretty sure everything that had happened was part of the other's carefully crafted plan. How could Yuugi have been so thoughtless? He didn't even have that much alcohol, he couldn't do anything except blame himself. 

Atem would keep messing with Yuugi's head, let him pretend that he and Yuugi were just some item in the background while he kept doing whatever he wanted. Yuugi was too much of an idiot to see what was really happening, and now he wondered if there was any way to salvage the remnants of his self respect. It was getting harder with each passing moment he spent with the vigilante.

He would promise himself never to lose his head with the other again, no matter the settings or the words used. He would not get played this easily.

He snorted to no one in particular. He was getting played like the easiest instrument and he couldn't even admit it to himself, if he did then Atem would have really won. 

He kept trying to type out the report about Pegasus, he had plenty of evidence and the police still hadn't pieced together the facts. The only thing in the public's knowledge was that the company was having a financial crisis, due to someone hacking it's banking system and screwing around with the payroll of many important employees. Atem had been brilliantly careful, he even set up a fake alibi for Yuugi that was so realistic the journalist would've fallen for it. 

Yuugi wasn't used to having a partner so competent. He could feel Bakura looking left out when he tried to explain to his coworker what he was currently writing and why it was taking so long. 

He didn't mean to have replaced him with Anpu. It just kind of...happened.

And now he was jumping into bed with him literally and figuratively. If Kaiba wasn't his boss, he'd set a hit man on him...again.

Yuugi looked over his article again, it was getting lengthy. It was a full report, so it's not like he wasn't allowed to go over 20 pages but he didn't want his boss complaining he was taking up the full journal for a shot at academic publishing. He didn't want publishers knocking at his door over this, he wanted Pegasus to get fucked over. 

Yuugi had half a mind to call Atem again to get his input on what had been written so far. It had been a couple days since their incident. He prayed the other man didn't give him shit for not calling the next day, or worse wanting another 'date'.

Scrolling down to 'Dentist', he cleared his throat and prepared for the worst. That still wasn't enough.

“This long and no flowers even?”

Atem sounded way too smug, Yuugi knew he was smiling on the other end of the line.

“You'll forgive me, I'm sure.”

“Every time. What's wrong, feeling lonely?”

“Drop dead. I'm still working on the article, I wanted your input again.”

“If you wanted to grab a bite with me you could always ask.”

“You only hear what you want to hear, this might be why you've had to work alone for this long.”

“I only hear what you want to say to me but you keep dodging that fact by putting your work in front.”

Yuugi put a hand to his face, he would go in circles if he didn't become the adult in this situation.

“How does 1 pm sound?”

“I hope you're not wearing anything wrinkled, otherwise I'll let you pick this time.”

“I am picking, your tastes are bougie and they're not even worth it.”

“Oh? And here I thought you liked to spoil me or is that only when the door's closed?”

“Drop dead.”

He hung up, feeling his blood pressure on the verge of exploding.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Short chapter interlude
> 
> idk if I have to change the rating, i'm not brave enough nor do I trust anyone to be understanding with things I write unless they're close friends so...
> 
> this is a good level to keep things


	11. Chapter 11

Yuugi was in a t-shirt and jeans this time, because he was going to pick their location. He was getting sick of being helpless, it was annoying having the other insist whatever they were supposed to do without even bothering to ask.

He was annoyed with himself for wanting to pick a nicer than average t-shirt and his jeans that weren't ripped. He should've dressed like how he liked dressing, not worrying if the other was observing him or not.

He probably wasn't! He already made that pretty clear last time, whatever they had was a cover. Yuugi didn't mean anything special, he was convenient right now with making Atem look like a regular civilian. Regular civilians go on dates and have their dates spending the night. Regular civilians have feelings for each other and talk about how much they admire each other. 

Atem isn't a regular civilian. He pressed that point loud and clear to Yuugi, and he'd make sure he'd never forget. 

He didn't like how petulant he was sounding to himself, probably because he might be a little touchy still on the subject.

Driving in his car to the plaza he had told the other man to meet him at (he can fucking walk this time, Yuugi thought to himself prior) wasn't enough to calm his nerves. He saw him sitting at a table near the restaurants, in the shade with some book. He looked so dignified, it would've been charming if not for the fact that Yuugi was still mildly salty. 

All of this was a cover. Yuugi felt so stupid about it, and the worst part was he couldn't even talk to any of his friends. Not out of fear of being turned in for assisting a criminal, he trusted his friends unconditionally, more so he worried they would be pissed and try to take actions against a dangerous man. 

He was more afraid of what Atem could do in return than anything else. At this point, he had to wonder where exactly this would all end. What did Atem want long term, after he was done ruining Pegasus? Did he really plan on going forward with his normal fake civilian life as if he didn't have anything on his conscious, was a thought that Yuugi found himself circling. 

A stubborn part of Yuugi's brain was screaming that there was still a chance to stop Atem causing anymore harm. Somehow the other man was thrown off moments before Yuugi lost his mind, that had to mean he was having an influence on him. It must mean something, no matter how small. 

Eventually Yuugi found parking nearby and tried to bring as much strength to his voice, walking up to the other man with his nerves in tact. He was making direct eye contact once he knew the other noticed him, letting Atem speak first. 

“You're early.”

The smaller man smiled up at him, he was also casual for once. Loose pants and a tank top but he still managed to retain his air of royalty. It felt safe, the other wasn't trying to be a threat. Or maybe he felt safe around Yuugi. That would be nice to know, if he was also forgetting how much of this was him pretending to be a hero instead of all actuality a criminal using a part of the media to his own benefit. 

He was becoming bitter, he knew it, it's not healthy to assume the worst in Atem when it was only one comment and for all Yuugi knew it wasn't meant in a hurtful way. He'd get to the point so that they both knew where this interaction would go. He'd do his best to stay level in the face of the other's odd sense of humor. 

“I kinda have a lot of work going on, so if you could give me more of a heads up for when you want to do your 'night raids', I'd appreciate a month's notice this time.”

Atem blinked and cleared his throat. 

“Of course, I'm sorry. Your work has been suffering because of me.”

Yuugi wanted to cut in but the other stopped him with a raised hand. 

“I'm not saying that to belittle what you do, I'm sorry. I want to go after one of Pegasus's twins next week, but I can wait until a better time. I want you to be there, your smarter than you give yourself credit for.”

At that Yuugi snorted. Atem only kept smiling, because of course Yuugi was funny to him. If he was trying to sound helpful, it wasn't successful. 

“Stop with the sad eyes, I want you there. What did you want me to say?”

“I didn't say anything, your projections are getting obnoxious.”, he was fighting himself not to sound frustrated.

Atem's response was a confused sound, still alert enough to catch on to the other getting emotionally charged. “I'm sorry? Please let me know how I can say things so you don't get offended.”

Yuugi knew his voice was rising, but the other wasn't being tactful.

“You really don't think talking like that is offensive?”

“Explain, I don't.”

Yuugi had to remind himself not to tremble, why was this upsetting him so much? It was becoming more apparent his first assumption of the other just being an emotionally dense but well meaning vigilante was spot on, but he was afraid of...something. He felt like he was choking again.

“Let's just go get lunch, I'm tired of fighting with you.”

“We were fighting?”

Yuugi had to look back at his face for that one, somehow feeling a spike in rage when the other was that incredibly clueless. Against himself, his slow fuse was at its limit. He slammed a hand on the table before standing up, not even wanting to look up. 

“GO MAKE FRIENDS THAT AREN'T ME AND LEARN HOW TO FUCKING TALK--”

He knew Atem was probably wide eyed, too shocked to follow Yuugi storming away. Least, he hoped the other would take this hint. 

He was tired of this, without thinking he was sending a text to Jounouchi to find out if he was free.

He felt like he was getting pulled too deeply into a person again, but it would be beneficial to talk to someone. 

\------------------------------------------------------------------------

Jounouchi had a way with words that made Yuugi feel comfortable. It was the way he was capable of making a situation about himself while still being empathetic and understanding.

“If she's putting out that helps, but if she's still pissing you off then it's not worth it. He, scuse me I forget that you like hopping over the fence every 4 years.”

“Thank you, but I don't think it'll be that simple...he keeps popping up and even when it feels like he's treating me like an insecure idiot I know he's not doing it on purpose. I wish he was, then I could hate him, but he genuinely doesn't know how to be nice sometimes so I feel like I have to help him out.”

He didn't know what to make of the look Jounouchi gave him.

“It's not....it's a really bad idea to date your boss, you kno--” the taller man fumbled over himself, and Yuugi felt it important to give him mercy but cutting him off.

“It's not him.”

“Ok good, I told you already he breaks people for fun.”

They both knew this too well.

“No, of course, it's not him. I don't even know really what went over me when I ….I didn't mean to bring him in so much. I didn't even want anyone right now is the frustrating part, he just kind of showed up and I couldn't stop myself from chasing him.”

Yuugi let out a heavy breath, looking over to his close friend grinning.

“...are you love struck?”

The journalist looked at the ground for a minute, thinking carefully. What was he feeling? Why did he still feel like he wanted to call the other man up and apologize when he knew the other wouldn't even understand or find it worth his time to acknowledge the moment that had happened almost an hour ago.

“I don't know why I have to keep making myself guilty when I know he's already forgotten the whole thing.”

“That sounds better than him bitching about it for weeks after you've made up.”

“Yes it is, he only got angry once and it was completely my own fault!”

“Let me meet him, I can tell if he's bullshitting you.”

Jounouchi wouldn't offer himself without it being a burden. The other was concerned, but Yuugi would prefer if this one time he didn't make his friend's happiness a priority to get hyper over. 

“It's fine...”

“I'm serious”

Yuugi wanted nothing more than to tell the entire story to Jounouchi at that moment, and relieve himself of the entire stress that had occurred. If he did, then maybe he could finally have someone slap him for being so stupid to get involved in the first place.

There was a possibility Bakura already had filled him in, at least partially, that Yuugi was running after a lead. He prayed if the other did know, he was being intentionally careful with his word choice. Yuugi really didn't want to consider the possibility that the vigilante was stalking him, or had hacked his phone's recording feature. 

...and now he felt creeped out and paranoid.

“If we did, he'd think you were spying.”

“Make it a double date then.”

“I know you're single, he probably does too.”

“You don't think I'd show up stag when you need me, do you? And why would he know that?”

“Fine, fine, find someone and it'll be fine.”

“Great, and try not to take it so seriously.”

Yuugi couldn't talk the other man out of not hugging him in public. It was how Jounouchi was with him.

He felt helpless and stupid, probably because his friend was right and everything was the exact same as it was the first time he met Atem. He could've been misreading their interactions, and this whole time the other was truly pretending so as to keep things moving. 

He needed a second opinion from people who knew how to read people.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> not dead, just tired


	12. Chapter 12

Yuugi was happy the other was receptive to him texting out of the blue an apology. He didn't expect the other to call him back saying he was sorry for putting unnecessary stress on him and for coming off as so business oriented. Yuugi had no idea what that meant, but he said thank you anyway and invited him out on a date to meet his friend and his...probably a coworker or something, he wasn't 100% clear on who was going to be joining them.

Yuugi wanted to scream when he saw Jounouchi in his workplace, walking out of his boss's, giving him a wink and a thumbs up.

Yuugi does not know how things are going to go next month, on the agreed day that all of them were available and had the time to go to a place that his boss didn't know Yuugi had already gone to with the vigilante. Yuugi didn't want to point out that there was history there as well between him and his boss, but his boss was practically skipping around the office, giving a ghost smile when Yuugi said he might not make his dead line this week.

Kaiba simply gave a warm 'Don't worry, take your time'. Kaiba does not do that ever. Mokuba was also scared and asking Yuugi if he knew what was happening to make his brother and their mutual boss so chipper. Yuugi didn't want to tell him because Mokuba also had a history of bullying Jounouchi's intellectual capacity in their youth, and he didn't know how the younger brother would react in his adulthood. 

Beneath every man is a child that wants everything his own way, that's something Yuugi learned when he was in university and realizing no matter how friendly and polite he was, there was still going to be situations where that isn't enough. He has no control in the universe, and that's ok.

Yuugi is contemplating how much his family would earn if he crashed his car on his drive home.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I will learn how to use the format on this website one day. When I'm not lazy


End file.
